Stihl MS250 review

[Big J]

Quick Stihl MS250 review, reviewing a non professional saw in a professional situation. Predictable results!

 

Anyway, bought an MS250 for hardwood thinning as I didn't have any other option at the time (needed a saw quickly - I only had two 088s for milling prior to the 250). I was assured that there had been no problems with the saws previously sold, so went ahead with it. Over a period of about 5 weeks it felled perhaps 1100-1300 trees up to a maximum size of 20 inches or so (on an 18 inch bar) with about 50 tanks of fuel put through it.

 

It developed a recurrent oiling issue where it would oil slightly after being scrubbed clean, and then block up again after a couple of days use. This developed about 3 weeks in. It also threw a plastic bung from the AV system resulting in me having to make an alteration to keep the handle on.

 

Anyway, as a saw to work with for more than short periods, it's not to be recommended. It is fairly powerful and light for small tree felling, but the vibrations are quite high, the air filter is poor and easily blocked and the saw doesn't disassemble in a logical or user friendly fashion. It is however quite frugal on fuel, using half what my colleague with an MS361 was using on the same workload.

 

The build quality seems to be much lower than that of the professional saws and bizarrely chains and parts are more expensive than the MS260.

 

Speaking of which, the dealer from whom I purchased the MS250 is replacing it with a MS260.

 

I realise that this review may be an exercise in stating the obvious, but I am still quite bemused that the saw lasted so little time, on what wasn't a hideously high workload (I imagine that cross cutting dry firewood for a couple of hours would tax the saw considerably more than a days thinning 6-12 inch beech, ash, sycamore and oak).

 

So, if anyone is thinking of purchasing a small saw, don't, for the love of God, buy anything lower than an MS260!

 

Jonathan